Makati Buildings Must Be ‘Quake Proof’

Published May 11, 2017, 10:01 PM

By Rizal S. Obanil

Makati City Mayor Abigail Binay urged the owners and administrators of medium and high-rise
buildings to comply with a memorandum recently issued by the Office of the Building Official (OBO)
which aims to make all buildings in the city earthquake-proof.

The OBO’s memorandum is a reiteration of the Department of Public Works and Highways’ (DPWH)
mandatory requirements for buildings measuring 50 meters or higher.

“For the safety and welfare of the occupants, clients, and visitors of buildings in Makati City, we enjoin
your immediate and full compliance with the relevant directives of the DPWH. Let us heed the
warning signs and act swiftly to make sure our buildings and structures can withstand the big one if
and when it actually happens,” Binay said.

The building owners are required to secure a certification from the OBO certifying that their building is
structurally stable.

So far, Binay revealed that 28 buildings have already submitted the requirements to acquire a
certificate of structural stability.

This, the local chief executive said, is a requirement for buildings that are over 15 years old.

She said that there are now 34 high-rise buildings with earthqake recording instruments otherwise
known as seismographs.

The installation of seismographs in buildings was made a requisite by the DPWH in 2011.

DPWH Memoramdum Circular No. 3 dated March 31, 2011 cites Section 105(2) of the National
Structural Code of the Philippines which requires the installation of accelerometers or
seismographs in structures 50 meters high such as high-rise buildings.

The other DPWH Memo, DPWH Memorandum Circular No. 5 of 2007 requires buildings in
existence for more than 15 years to undergo a comprehensive evaluation for structural
strength and stability conducted by a qualified structural engineer, who will then issue a
certification of structural stability if it passes the current structural standards in the country.
NATIONAL STRUCTURAL CODE OF THE PHILIPPINES 2015

NSCP 2015

BUILDINGS, TOWERS AND OTHER VERTICAL STRUCTURES

Introduction

Changes and Development (Building Code Latest References and Significant design
revisions and Minimum Design Loads Design provisions)

Chapter 1 General Requirements

Section 105 Instrumentation (Earthquake Recording Instrument)

Chapter 2 Minimum Design Load

Chapter 3 Earthquake and Foundation

Chapter 4 Structural Concrete

Chapter 5 Structural Steel

Chapter 6 Wood

Chapter 7 Masonry